City College of San Francisco plans to close its nine-story downtown campus at the end of the spring semester and move classes to six other locations, the San Francisco Chronicle first reported. (The Chronicle and SFGATE are both owned by Hearst but have separate newsrooms.)
The 47-year-old campus faces a loss of more than $2 million in state funding next year because it enrolls only the equivalent of 152 full-time students, below the 1,000-student threshold needed to continue receiving funding. City College President Kimberly Messina shared the news with staff in an email Friday, calling it a “difficult decision.” No employees will lose their jobs, and City College officials are exploring “potential partnerships with other educational institutions, community organizations, the city and other partners” for the 84,000-square-foot building, which opened in 1979.
SFGATE reached out to City College for more information but had not heard back as of press time.
Monday, March 9, 2026, City College’s downtown campus. (Amanda Bartlett/SFGATE)
The downtown campus at Fourth and Mission Streets specializes in fashion, language and culinary programs and includes the beloved Educated Palate restaurant, which formerly housed a full kitchen in the basement. Recently, baking and pastry students have been filling the space with chocolate croissants, golden baguettes and other baked goods (some of which are only $1) once a week for a pop-up shop that rivals Tartine’s. A sign on the building currently indicates the plans are on hold. Its founder and instructor, Elizabeth “Betsy” Leal, will retire at the end of this semester, and the program will be folded into other food service courses at City College’s main campus in Ingleside.
Just a few months ago, CalArts announced plans to close its campus near Potrero Hill at the end of the 2026-2027 academic year, with Vanderbilt University later taking over. At the time, CCA President David Howse noted that the century-old institution had been grappling with “underlying financial challenges” for nearly two years, including declining enrollment under a tuition-driven business model, changing demographics and “persistent structural deficits” in current programs. City College, which has lost 59 percent of its full-time students in the past decade alone, with enrollment falling from about 22,000 to just over 9,000, faces similar struggles, the Chronicle reported.
A sign in the window of Educated Palate announced that its popular pop-up shop would be temporarily closed. (Amanda Bartlett/SFGATE)
In the fiscal year 2026 budget, community colleges target 3 percent enrollment growth and aim to attract new students by “focusing on recruiting and retaining students,” “expanding non-credit course offerings” and “re-evaluating low-enrollment classes and reallocating resources to more productive departments.”
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This article was originally published on 47-year-old University of San Francisco campus announces plans to close.
